E17 ART TRAIL: Meet Countess Euphoria and her artist friends

5:23pm Friday 22nd August 2008

IN the first of a series of special interviews about the E17 Art Trail The Countess Euphoria meets photographer Rachel L’anson.

The Countess, also known as performance artist Ruth Calland, is just one of the hundreds of artists taking part in this year’s Art Trail, which takes place all over Walthamstow from September 6 to 14.

Hello my darlings As you may know, I am visiting the wonderful borough of Walthamstow, in the run up to the gorgeous E17 Arts Trail. All of my friends back home on planet Utopia are drop dead jealous. They think art is something you buy at Ikea anyway, and have no idea that real human beings can be such fountains of creativity. Any of you who visited all of the houses, galleries and shops that hosted the trail last year will remember, I am sure, the amazing displays that were created, and I just know that this year will be the best yet.

This week I’m going to focus on artists whose work tells a story. I want to introduce you to one of the lovely and special artists that you could meet, photographer Rachel L’Anson. Here is our little tete-a-tete.

Countess: “Well, Rachel, the first thing I notice about you is that you hardly smell at all. What do you think about this myth that all artists either live in garrets and are poor, or are filthy rich and just swan around all day ordering people to cut up cows and stuff sharks?”

Rachel: “I think most artists these days, including me, struggle to get a balance between social and family responsibilities, and finding the time and space to be creative. Louise Bourgeois said that she had no interest in accolades, she produces the work because she’s driven to. It’s the same for me and I think for most artists.”

Countess: “We’re flooded with photos all the time, images of real life are all around us. How can ordinary Utopians like me understand when a photograph is art?”

Rachel: “In the States, if you present a photograph, it’s almost automatically assumed that it’s an artistic statement, whereas here it’s assumed that it’s a snapshot. Today the joy of photography is that it is accessible, which is great, but that has been slightly to the detriment of people appreciating that it is a craft – it’s very technical – and the art comes from the meaning, the purpose and the vision.”

Countess: “At the Frieze art fair this year I saw a show of ten photographs, with orgiastic scenes in full technicolour, and there was a queue around the block to see them! Are people interested in photos that don’t have nude body parts in them, or cute animals, or famous people?”

Rachel: “It’s an issue, but if the work has weight and resonance, if people relate to it, or if the work has energy, that’s what draws people in.”

Countess: “Is that what you’re trying to do, capture an energy?”

Rachel: “At the moment I’m trying to capture a stillness. I’m looking at issues about female-ness at the moment, to do with being in a line of women in a family. That’s not to exclude men though - most people remember their gran, and so there’s a sort of communal memory of grandparents, which men engage with too, and have their own stories.”

Countess: “And can people afford to buy your work? Would they need to sell one of their children for instance, or do you accept organic vegetables as payment?”

Rachel: Organic vegetables would be fine.

Well, thank you Rachel, that was most illuminating. I’m sure all you art lovers will agree.

Ta Ta For Now, Countess Euphoria

WHAT TO SEE

* For photography workshops and two shows of students’ work during the Trail, see: rachelianson.co.uk or phone 07939 157576.

* Elegy for the Elswick - An Envoy award-winning film about an artist’s quest to find a home for her much loved and unique old car.

Vestry House Museum September 5 to 28. See nancywillis.co.uk.

* In a Lonely Place (Forever) - A film juxtaposing found footage and found songs, in which Humphrey Bogart has a chance encounter with, among others, The Smiths.

78 Beulah Road, 7.30 - 9.30 pm on September 9 to 12 and 1.30pm to 9.30 pm on September 13 and 14. See davidbarette.co.uk * 7 Contemporary Artists - An exciting show including high, and low, profile artists in domestic settings. Work includes printmaking, painting and sculpture with a narrative thread.

51 Rectory Road, 10am to 6pm on September 13 and 14 Sept. Contact ceridaviesj@yahoo.co.uk.

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